Ahead of the witness examination and hearing of activist and conscientious objector to military service Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal on 9 September, Amnesty International’s Regional Research Director Montse Ferrer said:
“Netiwit’s refusal to take part in this outdated system should be a wake-up call for the Thai authorities to urgently reform the country’s legal framework to allow for alternative services, in line with international human rights law and standards.
“International law requires countries with compulsory military service to provide alternative, civilian forms of national service. This reform is long overdue in Thailand, where refusing military conscription can result in three years’ imprisonment.
“As a State Party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and a member of the UN Human Rights Council, the Thai government has an obligation to respect and uphold the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion and refrain from punishing conscientious objectors. Authorities must immediately drop all charges against Netiwit.”
Background
In Thailand, military conscription for men aged 21 and over is determined each April through a lottery system – drawing a red card results in up to two years of mandatory service, while a black card grants exemption. There is also an option for voluntary enlistment.
On 22 May, the public prosecutor at the Samut Prakan Provincial Court indicted Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal, a prominent Thai human rights activist, for allegedly evading military conscription under Article 45 of the 1954 Military Conscription Act. If found guilty, Netiwit could be sentenced to up to three years’ imprisonment.
Netiwit’s indictment is linked to his refusal on 5 April 2024 to take part in military conscription. His refusal was an act of civil disobedience in relation to the army, where human rights abuses against military conscripts and low-ranking officials are rampant. In 2020, Amnesty International released a report detailing mental, physical and sexual abuse against conscripts in the Thai military.
UN human rights bodies, including the Human Rights Committee and the UN Human Rights Council, have recognized the right of conscientious objection to military service as part of the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion enshrined in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
Netiwit joined the Amnesty International movement in 2012 and previously served on the Board of Amnesty International Thailand between 2018 and 2019.
